–to address key development issues related to the environment, gender equality and other areas

THE new local development initiatives grant mechanism “Local Engagement and Action Fund” (LEAF) will be launched on Thursday by Emina Tudakovic, High Commissioner of Canada to Jamaica, Rajani Alexander, High Commissioner of Canada to Belize and Mark Berman, High Commissioner of Canada to Guyana.

The launch will take place on the Local Engagement and Action Fund’s Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/canadaleaffund from 11:00 hrs – 12:30 hrs.

According to a press release, LEAF is the local development initiatives grant mechanism under the Field Services Support Project – Caribbean (FSSP-C). The event will be held in Jamaica (in-person) and livestreamed to stakeholders in Belize, Guyana and Suriname.

The launch will alert stakeholders about the Field Services Support Project – Caribbean (FSSP-C) and particularly about the Local Engagement and Action Fund (LEAF).

This will include information on the overall goal of the LEAF along with updates on calls for proposals, who can apply, thematic areas, capacity building, collaborative learning opportunities and what to expect for 2023-2024.

The attendees include Global Affairs Canada (GAC) representatives, government agencies, the FSSP-C team, and relevant stakeholders based on the thematic areas and eligible organisations.

The LEAF initiative will support local organisations in eight Caribbean countries, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Suriname, to address their key developmental issues.

There will be an annual call for proposals from 2023-2026; the first one will be in May 2023 (Guyana and Suriname), June 2023 (Belize and Jamaica) and September 2023 (Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines).

“The main objective of LEAF is to strengthen organisations working in vulnerable sectors by improving access to financial resources to enhance their mandate. LEAF may respond to issues related to Gender Equality, Human Rights, Environment, Climate Change and Biodiversity, Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights, Gender-Based Violence and Youth Engagement. Each call for proposals will specify which themes will be focused on,” the release stated.

LEAF has two types of grants – short term (six-twelve months) and long-term grant (12-24 months).

Each call for proposals will determine the specific types of grants being offered. Short-term grants are CAD$20,000 to CAD$50,000 and long-term grants CAD$50,001 to CAD$100,000. LEAF will fund capacity building, technical support, administrative services and other direct project-related costs.

Organisations that are registered not-for-profit entities and fall in the following categories can receive funding under LEAF – non-government organisations, community-based organisations, women’s rights organisations, benevolent societies, foundations, charitable organisations, associations, public educational institutions, national and sub-national government entities and regional organisations. The organisation must, however, operate in one of the eight eligible countries.